The Power Swap
by NorthAmericanJaguar
Summary: During a battle, Lord Garmadon decides to use the Mega Weapon to create havoc and switch the ninja's elemental powers around. Kai, the ninja of ice? Jay with a scythe? Worst of all- Lloyd has switched powers with someone! Could anyone else even come close to defeating Lord Garmadon? The ninja hope they will never have to find out, as they race to get back to normal. Poll winner.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This is the story that received the most votes from the poll. It will probably be quite a bit shorter than "Once Bitten, New Life" (which don't worry, is NOT being abandoned!), due to the fact it occurs later in the seasons and is most definitely reversible. Has anyone else noticed how unnecessarily long and roundabout Garmadon's plans to eliminate the ninja are? **

**Garmadon: How dare you! My plans are brilliant!**

**Me: Seriously, you can do just about anything you want with that Mega Weapon! Why don't you wish for the ninja to become your slaves, or erase their memories, or turn them into grasshoppers and step on them?! **

**Garmadon: Thankfully, NorthAmericanJaguar does not own Ninjago. **

**Me: Yeah, 'cause if I came up with your master plans, you'd probably rule Ninjago.**

**Garmadon: *Grumbles***

* * *

It was a typical day in _Sensei Dareth's Mojo Dojo._

"There has been another Serpentine sighting in Ninjago City!" exclaimed Nya. "And Lord Garmadon has been spotted with them!" she and the five ninja stood in the training room, one of the few areas of the dojo that hadn't become a victim of Dareth's _interesting _style tastes. Kai still complained about the dangling beads that hung from every doorway.

"Right," said Cole to the rest of the assembled team. "we can handle this. Let's go!"

Kai turned to Lloyd. This would be his first mission since the incident with the Tomorrow's Tea. "You sure you're ready for this, kid?"

Lloyd nodded. "Absolutely."

"Then what are we all waiting for?" demanded Jay. "Let's go!"

All five spun into their ninja suits. "NINJA GO!"

"A mission?" Dareth poked his head hopefully from around the corner. "Well why didn't you say so? You are clearly going to need the help of Grand Sensei Dareth to defeat whatever evil forces you are up against."

"Dareth," Cole struggled to keep a straight face. "Your powers are needed elsewhere. We need you to stay and… guard the dojo."

A smirk from Kai and a poorly muffled laugh from Jay where the only indication the earth ninja needed to know that his team was barely holding it together.

"Yeah," the fire ninja snickered. "as if the dojo needed guarding. You couldn't beat me even if I were blindfolded with my hands tied behind my back."

"I DARETH you to say that again!"

"What my friend means to say is that he does not want to risk your safety." hastily interrupted Zane. "It would be safer if you stayed here."

The tension between the two was thick enough to cut with a knife. "Look," said Dareth, pointing to Nya. "Even she's going, and she's not even a ninja!"

Nya, who had been putting on her Samurai helmet stopped in mid motion. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Don't speak to my sister that way! You wouldn't survive one battle without one of us having to save you." challenged Kai

"Oh yeah? I bet I could."

"Oh, you're on." the red ninja glared daggers at the Elvis wannabe.

It was Lloyd who broke the angry silence. "Um, does that mean that Grand Sensei Dareth's coming with us?"

* * *

Minutes later the ninja plus Dareth were off, flying high in the clouds on the back of the Ultra Dragon. Nya, using the rocket boots on her Samurai suit flew alongside them.

Dareth gulped. Why had he agreed to this? He been so caught up in proving Kai wrong that he had forgotten that he was scared of heights! Higher and higher into the sky the Ultra Dragon climbed, the cold winds of high altitude mercilessly buffeting against him. His teeth chattered.

Glancing down for a split second, Dareth felt a wave of nausea. The trees of the forest they were traveling over were mere dots on the ground below.

"I'm getting air sick…" the Grand Sensei moaned. The slightly lurching flight pattern of the dragon wasn't helping any. Feeling queasy, he nearly lost his lunch.

"Holding in there?" asked Kai smugly, perfectly at ease on the back of the massive dragon.

_Stupid show off! I'll show him why no one dareth mess with Grand Sensei Dareth!_

With difficulty, Dareth swallowed and nodded. "There is nothing that I, Grand Sensei Dareth, can't do! I am a fearless warrior!" the dragon began their descent. Giving an undignified squeak, the brown sensei frantically grabbed on to one of the many ridges on the dragon's back. Kai rolled his eyes.

This was going to be a long trip.

At last the dragon landed on a rooftop in Ninjago City. The five ninja slid off the Ultra Dragons back, neatly landing on their feet. Behind them Dareth stood up, tripped on the saddle, and landed on the roof face first.

"I'm okay!" he declared, as if someone had asked.

"Great." muttered Kai, "Let's just get this over with."

Nya alighted on a nearby sky scraper. "I'll wait here, in case you guys need back up." Her Samurai suit was too bulky to be moving through the streets of Ninjago; and in order to catch Lord Garmadon and the Serpentine by surprise, stealth was vital.

"Now," said Cole. "If we are to defeat Garmadon, we will need to work as a team." Kai couldn't help feel as though the last phrase was aimed at him and Dareth.

The ninja of earth continued. "Follow my lead."


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's notes: Hello to all of my awesome followers/reviewers! You guys really surprised me- I didn't expect to get TEN reviews in the FIRST chapter, I had only expected two or three! I feel so supported… Anyways, I'll be going to back and forth between updating "The Power Swap" and my other fanfics. I can't wait to reach five stories so that I can be a beta reader! On that note, on with the story. Constructive criticism is always appreciated. Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago.**

* * *

Nimbly leaping from rooftop to rooftop, the ninja stealthily made their way down to the ground. Behind them, Dareth bumbled and tripped every step of the way. Cole mentally face palmed as he glanced back at his team to watch Zane save the incompetent sensei from falling of a roof to his death for the umpteenth time. Why had he let Kai talk him into this? Bad things always happened when Kai had his way.

_Well, hopefully this experience will scare Dareth away from ever asking to come on a mission with us ever again. _The earth ninja told himself. In the mean time though, Dareth was being a nuisance, endangering the mission as well as his own life.

It was also very irritating that while Kai had baited the brown sensei into coming along, he contributed none whatsoever to looking after Dareth. The fire ninja was only a few paces behind Cole, putting as much distance between him and the brown sensei as possible.

_When we get back to the dojo, I'm going to have a talk with Kai. A very long talk. _

Cole took a moment to wait for everyone to catch up before jumping onto the top of a one story house, where they could then leap to the ground without risking injury. Even Dareth would be able to handle the small drop… most likely.

Once everyone had assembled alive and well ( with Dareth having used Jay like a human pillow to cushion his fall), they snuck down an alleyway. The narrow lane was a perfect place to move unnoticed, being both dark and dingy smelling.

"How do we find Lord Garmadon?"

Cole smiled. Good old Zane; always one for a plan.

"That's easy," interrupted Kai. "just follow the sound of the screams."

Panicked civilians ran down the street, some hysterically shouting "Snakes!"

One young man ran around in circles before hitting an advertisement poster. The flustered youth quickly stumbled to his feet, shaking uncontrollably.

"Excuse me," Cole stepped out of the alley way. "You haven't happened to see Lord Garmadon and a bunch of Serpentine pass by, have you?"

The man nodded and pointed a shaky finger in the direction of the _Ninjago Supermarket._

"Thanks!" the earth ninja called over his shoulder as they dashed in the direction the man was pointing.

"What would Garmadon want at the supermarket?" wondered Zane.

Jay laughed weakly. "Maybe he forgot to buy apples and grapes?"

"Is now really the time to be making jokes?" snapped Kai.

The five ninja and Dareth burst through the doors of the _Ninjago Supermarket._ Carts were overturned and produce was scattered everywhere. The many rows of merchandise created an elaborate maze through the store. Faintly, they could hear the soft echoes of Lord Garmadon and the Serpentine talking amongst themselves.

"Ssso," they heard Skales hiss as they crept closer. Quickly, they all hid behind a large crate of watermelons. "When do you think the ninja will arrive? That iss, if they even show up at all."

"Silence!" came the unmistakable growl of Garmadon's voice. "How dare you question me! You forget, I hold the Mega Weapon."

"And look how much good it hass done usss." muttered the Hypnobrai mutinously.

Ignoring the frantic hand signals from the ninja, Dareth decided to sneak closer for a better look. So caught up in his task, he slipped on a puddle of orange juice and fell on his back. He tried to muffle his yelp of surprise, but it was too late.

"It'sss the ninja!" Skales cried. "Attack!"

Instantly Cole, Kai, Jay, Zane, and Lloyd leapt out of their hiding spot, weapons raised. Dareth cowered and resumed hiding behind the watermelon crate.

"I knew we shouldn't have brought Dareth along." Cole heard Kai grumble.

"Tell me about it."

Garmadon raised the Mega Weapon, his voice drowned out by the loud outcries of the Serpentine tribes. The weapon grew brighter and brighter, until it emitted a blinding ball of light. The ball of light exploded with a sound like a thunderclap, sending shockwaves through the air and throwing all of the ninja back against the walls .

The blast from the Mega Weapon had caused Cole to collide with Jay. Untangling himself from the blue ninja, he unsteadily stood up. Jay too scrambled to his feet. Whipping out his scythe, he held it out threateningly at Garmadon.

"Not so fast." he then slammed the Scythe of Quakes into the tiled floor to create an earthquake. Only problem was, the earthquake never came. With a sinking feeling, Cole came to a horrible realization. His Spinjitsu powers were gone.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: This was my first actual fight scene, so I hope it went okay. You guys are getting a treat- I had a snow day today so I got to update this chapter WAY sooner than expected. I always love those "So-and-So-Gets-Hit-By-The-Mega-Weapon" fanfics! It's always interesting to see different takes on what Garmadon could've done. I just realized the ninja couldn't have their golden weapons, so they couldn't be in the story. *Face palms*However, I'm just going to say that they went to the temple of light early and got these replicas instead of those light saber type swords. The golden weapons are way better anyways.**

* * *

The force of the blast from the Mega Weapon had sent Zane barreling back into Kai. The ninja of fire got the worst of it, his head had been struck against the floor. He lay in a huddled heap of red cloth a few feet away from Zane, unmoving.

"Kai?" the ninja of ice shook his brother gently. Kai's head lolled forward, but he remained dead to the world. He had been knocked out cold. Gently, he lay Kai back down on the ground. Right now, his current task was to fight the Serpentine so that Lloyd could battle his father.

Where was Lloyd anyways?

He turned to see Dareth and Lloyd scramble out of an overturned trashcan, out of all the places they could have been blown into. Lloyd brushed off the debris but brownish chunks of unknown origin clung stubbornly to Dareth's Elvis Presley styled hairdo. Zane sensed that he may have found that quite funny if his humor switch had been turned on.

To his right he saw Cole whip out his scythe, Jay standing a little behind him. Relief flooded through his body. Everyone was alive and accounted for. The ice ninja's data scanners picked up no unusual or abnormal energy signatures in the store, so clearly Lord Garmadon had not summoned a monster or a portal of some kind.

So what had he created then?

"Not so fast!" said Cole, swinging his scythe. Quickly calculating the seismic strength of the earthquake by the force times the velocity of Cole's swipe, he braced himself for impact. The scythe struck the ground, but created no earthquake. A look of horror passed across the earth ninja's face. It defied all logic, but then it dawned on Zane. Somehow, Cole had lost his elemental power.

Something inside him snapped, most likely his self-control. "You will not hurt my friends!" He shouted.

Reaching deep inside himself, Zane called on the power of his True Potential. He took a long breath, waiting for the feeling of inner peace and calm to wash over him, to encase himself in the power of ice. Instead he felt a vast emptiness in his chest where his potential should have been, a void of nothingness. A choked cry escaped his lips, but he could not dwell on his loss. He needed to ensure that they had not come to fight Garmadon in vain.

Zane threw the Shurikans of Ice at a nearby Venomari. Without his True Potential, they were reduced to decorative golden shurikans, incapable of producing ice. Nonetheless, they did their job well, knocking over the Serpentine before returning to his hands.

"Get them!" called Skales. "Ssseize the ninja!"

Two Fangpyre ran towards Zane. His first instinct was use his Spinjitsu, before he reminded himself that he no longer _had_ Spinjitsu. The first warrior struck, lunging at him with his deadly fangs. Thinking fast, Zane sidestepped, barely avoiding the snake's teeth. The second Serpentine approached, more wary now. It jabbed at Zane with a spear, a smirk on its cruel reptilian face. With incredible balance, Zane vaulted onto the spear and gave the Fangpyre a hard kick in the face.

It dropped the spear and backed away, clutching its sore muzzle. Looking around, the ice ninja realized that none of his comrades were using Spinjitsu either. Kai, who had woken up at some point during the battle, waved his sword wildly at the onslaught of Serpentine. Jay, who lacked a proper melee weapon, was fighting back to back with Cole. Even without his Spinjitsu, the earth ninja made a formidable opponent.

Poor Lloyd was mainly focused on trying not to get hit by of his attackers, lacking an elemental weapon of his own. Dareth was nowhere to be seen, most likely hiding behind a shelf. Slowly Zane fought his way over to Cole and Jay.

"There are too many of them!" he called to the earth ninja. "We are surrounded!"

"What are we going to do without our Spinjitsu?" asked Jay hysterically. "It's kind of important!"

Safely surrounded by Serpentine, Garmadon leered at the tiring ninja. He grinned, eyes narrowed malevolently.

_How dare he do this to us!_ Thought Zane in an uncharacteristic rage. _For that he will pay._

Something white hot and protective coursed through his veins. The warm sensation grew stronger, until the ice ninja acted on instinct.

"Ninja go!" he yelled, creating a Spinjitsu tornado. Serpentine after Serpentine were flung out of the way until at last he stopped, exhausted. The other ninja were staring at him in astonishment.

He frowned. "What is the matter?"

It was Jay who spoke. "You were doing Spinjitsu, Zane. _Fire _Spinjitsu!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: I know this is a filler chapter, don't kill me! The battle just drug on and on… I was trying to find a way to end it quickly without making it seem too rushed. Next chapter the ninja (plus Dareth!) will find out about and begin exploring their new powers. Oh, the fun I'm going to have with this! *Evil grin* Also, coming up later is a Garmadon POV chapter, in which all his motives are explained. Which should come next? Review to decide which you would rather see first! **

* * *

Zane twitched slightly, making Kai wonder if the nindroid was going to short-circuit like he had after they had been turned into children.

"That… makes no sense." said the nindroid. "How is that possible?"

"I'd love to find out, but right now we're busy!" Cole gestured to the advancing Serpentine army. The five ninja stood back to back, bracing themselves to fight off the ever tightening ring of snakes.

Lord Garmadon sat back and watched. He leaned heavily on the Mega Weapon, still exhausted from the effort it took to tap into its power. "It is over!" the Dark Lord sneered. "You cannot possibly defeat my Serpentine allies in your current state. Soon I will remake Ninjago, in my own image!"

"You will never get away with this!" Kai retorted.

"I was hoping someone would say that. Because that makes it all the more satisfying that I already have!"

The red ninja gulped. Their odds of getting out of this situation were looking pretty slim, with Zane being the only one knowing how to do Spinjitsu.

_Fire Spinjitsu. _He told himself unhappily. _Zane, the ninja of ice, is using _my_ fire Spinjitsu. _If Zane now used fire, where did that leave him? Bitterness surged through Kai. Garmadon had just stolen an irreplaceable piece of him. Without his Spinjitsu, he was just the hot-headed son of a blacksmith.

While everyone held out their weapons in preparation to defend themselves from the onslaught of Serpentine, Zane serenly looked up. Kai followed his gaze, but saw nothing but the ceiling.

It was wrong to be mad at his brother for something outside his control, but the former ninja of fire couldn't help but think; _Zane is really weird._ _Of all the times to stare off into space, he chooses now? _

Suddenly, a massive red object came crashing through the roof. Bits of paster and ceiling tile rained down everywhere, causing the ninja and Serpentine alike to hold their hands above their heads and look away from the battle. Kai coughed as the dust settled. There stood Nya, the massive red object being her Samurai suit.

"Hey guys, did I miss anything?"

Jay pumped his fist. "You're just in time! Now we can kick some Serpentine butt!"

"Don't need to tell me twice!" with renewed vigor, the ninja leapt back into battle.

Turn, twist, hit. Kai fell into a steady routine of punches. The number of attacking Serpentine diminished with Nya on the scene, firing shots in every direction.

"Ssserpentine, retreat!" Skales hissed, slithering away as fast as his tail could carry him. The other generals were quick to follow suit, each relaying their orders to their own tribes. The lesser Serpentine warriors quickly abandoned the fight, scrambling over each other in a mad dash to get out of the store.

Lord Garmadon gritted his teeth in rage. "No, you fools! Get back here, I order you to fight!" the fleeing Serpentine either took no notice of the dark lord or chose to ignore him, for soon he was left standing alone in the store with the ninja.

"Just goes to show, never trust a snake." said Cole, propping himself up haughtily against his scythe. Realizing he was alone and outnumbered, Garmadon backed slowly towards the back door.

"This isn't over yet, ninja!" he spat before running out the door after the Serpentine.

"How'd you know to find us, sis?" Kai turned to Nya.

"When we began to fight, I used my falcon vision to locate my falcon and warn Nya. I could only hope she would understand my warning."

Nya nodded. "I saw the falcon and figured that you guys must have been in danger. The only person the falcon normally comes to is Zane."

_So that's why he was staring at the ceiling expectantly. Maybe I shouldn't have been so quick to judge him. _The red ninja felt a twinge of guilt.

Before he could even think of something to say to the nindroid, the watermelon crate started to move. Reflexively Kai pointed his sword at the mysterious disturbance. What was it? An innocent civilian caught up in the battle? A Serpentine?

Out of the crate came Dareth. Kai released a breath he hadn't known he was holding.

"Are they gone yet?" the incompetent sensei quailed.

"Yes," he sighed,"no thanks to you."

"And that brings us to our next issue." Jay laughed nervously.

"Yes?" Nya cocked her head, unsure of where this discussion was going.

"Our Spinjitsu powers, they're sort of missing."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Hello all of my awesome reviewers/followers! By request, this chapter is Garmadon's POV. I found Garmadon a hard character to write, but I enjoyed doing it (especially his thoughts on a certain general!). As always, I am open to constructive criticism and am always looking for new story ideas. If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, feel free to PM me. This chapter also contains a bit of foreshadowing… so be on your watch for things arising in future chapters! Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago.**

* * *

Garmadon dashed out of the supermarket and jumped onto one of the rattlecopters before it took off. Despite the fact he had been unable to defeat the ninja and that annoying girl of a samurai then and there, he could not deny that he felt giddy with relief.

_My plan worked. _A predatory grin spread across the dark lord's face._ My plan actually worked! _

"My plan worked!" he laughed as the rattlecopter gained altitude, flying high over the land of Ninjago. The wind whipped at his face, and Garmadon allowed himself a breath of fresh air as he closed his eyes. How long had it been since he had felt this sense of victory? There was nothing that could spoil his good mood except-

"Ssso, remind me again. What wass the point of wassting our time sstanding around waiting for the ninja in a grocery sstore? What wass the good of making the ninja all sswitch powersss? Asss sssoon asss they masster their new element, we'll be back where we sstarted!"

Garmadon grit his teeth. Nothing could spoil his mood except for a certain Hypnobrai general, that is. How many times did the fool question his judgement?

_There was a reason my father locked you and your kind up… _He thought darkly as he turned to face Skales. Of all the Serpentine in the four tribes, what where the odds he would get stuck with his least favorite snake of all time? _Excluding the Great Devourer, of course. The world must hate me. _

The Hypnobrai prattled on, seemingly oblivious to his growing anger. "…and every plan you have ever made hass ended in failure!"

The darkness rose up in Garmadon, and he yearned to push Skales off the side of the rattlecopter. Unfortunately, the Hypnobrai was still too valuable to eliminate. Without Skales, their oh-so-brilliant leader, the Serpentine tribes would fall into anarchy within days. An army divided was worse than no army at all.

So instead of grasping Skales in a chokehold like he longed to, he envisioned the Hypnobrai general being made into a nice pair of snake-skin leather boots. Or a suitcase. It was a mental image that had helped him greatly over the past several months.

"Enough!" Garmadon thrust the Mega Weapon at Skale's face. The general reflexively flinched, though both knew that the legendary weapon was temporarily powerless. "This plan _will _work! It is different from the others."

"How ssso?"

"Because, all of this time I have been trying to stop the ninja. But it is not the ninja who need stopping- it is _destiny. _According to destiny _, _I must fight the Green Ninja. All of my plans before have been to cheat destiny, to stop it from happening. But destiny is as powerful and cruel as the evil that flows through ny veins. It cannot be stopped, but it can be changed."

For once Skales listened with rapt attention.

"When I ordered the Mega Weapon to change the ninja's powers, I was also changing my destiny. Lloyd is no longer the Green Ninja, which means that I will not have to fight him. I must now fight the new Green Ninja, who happens to be the most bumbling fool on the face of Ninjago.

Personally, I was hoping the Mega Weapon would make Kai the Green Ninja. He is the most obnoxious of the four guardians. But that no longer matters, because this works out even better. Ninjago is as good as mine!"

The Hypnobrai nodded in understanding. "I wasss wrong to doubt you." he hissed.

To the inexperienced eye, the general seemed genuinely contrite. Garmadon however, was experienced in betrayals, having participated in a few himself. There was only murder in those blood red eyes and in those clenched hands. His adversary was a quite literally a coiled cobra, waiting to strike.

With the muffled _thump_ of metal hitting sand, the rattlecopter landed. Their hideout in the middle of the desert wasn't much, but it would've been impossible to smuggle four tribes worth of snakes into a populated area of Ninjago.

Cutting in front of Garmadon, Skales slithered out of the rattlecopter. How one could jump gracefully off a platform without legs was beyond the dark lord. Shaking his head, stepped off onto the ground.

"You there!" the Hypnobrai snapped at a Venomari scout who had been unfortunate enough to get in the bad-tempered general's way. "Keep moving!"

Garmadon bristled at the Hypnobrai's arrogance. What right did that snake have to command his troops? However, there was nothing Garmadon could do besides clench his jaw and contemplate whether he wanted a new suitcase, made from the hide of a certain general.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note: I have officially been weirded out… the voice actor for Lloyd Garmadon is a woman! I always thought his voice was a little strange, but I thought it was just to make him more obnoxious in the earlier episodes when he was a villain wannabe. I can't remember the her name though. Anyways, Lord Garmadon and Dr. Julien also have the same voice actor as well as Jay and the mailman. Turns out, the guy who voiced Skales also happened to be the dad in Johnny Test? Weirdness! Anyways, off of my totally random freak out and back to the story. **

* * *

"Uncle!" Lloyd called, jumping off the Ultra Dragon before its claws had even touched the ground. After being saved by Nya, the ninja plus Dareth had flown back to Ninjago city as fast as the dragon's wings could take them.

He ran into the Mojo Dojo, frantically looking for the elderly Spinjitsu master. "Uncle?"

"Yes, Lloyd?" Sensei Wu emerged from a nearby room, clutching a cup of tea. "It is good to see that you have returned safely. Would you care for some tea?"

Lloyd shook his head no. "Something's wrong, Sensei. We found my father, but he… he did something to us."

The other four ninja and Dareth burst into the room, all clamoring and shouting at once.

"Before anyone asks, it's all Dareth's fault!" began Kai.

"My fault? How is this my fault?" shouted Dareth.

"Lord Garmadon used his Mega Weapon and-" said Zane

"It was a trap and there was an explosion-" yelled Cole.

"Then Zane was doing Spinjitsu! Fire Spinjitsu!" wailed Jay.

Sensei Wu set down his tea-cup and covered his ears. "ENOUGH!" he snapped. All five froze comically in mid-rant, mouths hanging open and hands paused in the middle of odd gestures. "Now," the old Spinjitsu Master continued calmly. "Would anyone like to explain what happened? One at a time." He added hurriedly, seeing that the pandemonium was about to start all over again.

Zane was the first to recover. "Lord Garmadon and the Serpentine were spotted at _The Ninjago Super Market. _Wondering if this was the time for the Final Battle, we went out to defeat him…" And so the retelling of the days events began.

Nearly half an hour later, the ninja plus Dareth finish explaining the events of the supermarket. The narration of the story had been choppy, as each speaker had a tendency to interupt the previous one, desperate to explain their point of view. Jay in particular would rambled on and on if he had not been cut off by Cole, who finished summarizing their misadventure.

Sensei Wu stroked his long beard thoughtfully. "It seems unlikely that Zane should be the only one with unusual powers."

"What are you saying, Sensei?" asked Kai.

"I'm saying that the Mega Weapon cannot destroy, but only create. Therefore, your Spinjitsu cannot be gone for good." He glanced pensively at his students. "Have you considered the idea that you're powers might have been _swapped?_"

"What?" spluttered Jay. "That means that I'm no longer the Ninja of Lightning! What am I then?"

Zane frowned. "That means that one of us in now the Green Ninja."

_Does that mean I'm just a regular ninja now? _Lloyd hesitated, unsure of whether to be upset or relieved. He had sacrificed so much to become the Green Ninja, giving up both his father and his childhood. However, becoming the Chosen One was the best thing that had ever happened to him. As much as his father had loved him, he had never been there for Lloyd. Not the way Sensei Wu and the rest of the ninja had. They were more than his team; they where his family.

Yet at the back of his mind a voice whispered; _Isn't this what you've always wanted? A chance to live a normal life? You didn't ask to become the Green Ninja, but nobody cared enough to ask you if you wanted to or not. _

_No, _thought Lloyd. _Uncle Wu and the ninja are my family, they would never do anything to hurt me! I didn't want to be the Green Ninja, but I had no choice. If my sacrifice is what it takes to defeat my father, then I'll do it!" _

"You okay there, Lloyd?" Kai nudged his arm. "You kinda spaced out there."

"Yeah, I'm fine." he mumbled, unable to bring himself to meet the red ninja's eyes. Was Kai now the Green Ninja?

"Ooh! Oooh!" Dareth excitedly jumped up and down like a little boy who was told that he was getting a puppy for Christmas. "Does this mean that I have awesome powers now?"

The kindness Kai had shown for Lloyd evaporated instantaneously. "No, Dareth. You don't have any powers to swap."

The incompetent Sensei slumped in defeat. "Oh."

"So," Cole spoke the question everyone was thinking. "How do we figure out who got whose powers?"

"Perhaps we should swap golden weapons?" mused Zane. "They react to the touch of someone of the same element." He took off his shurikens and passed them to Lloyd.

Reverently, Lloyd grabbed the former ice ninja's weapons. The golden shurikens where smooth and cold to the touch, their golden spikes glistening like icicles at sunset in the light. With bated breath, he waited for something incredible to happen. The shurikens remained powerless in his hands.

"Don't worry." said Cole, seeing the look on the youngest ninja's face. "There's still three more weapons to try."

Lloyd passed the Shurikens of Ice to Kai. As soon as Kai held them, they began to glow. Frost curled softly off the shurikens, giving them an otherworldly appearance.

"Well, it looks like Kai's found his element." stated Cole. Kai, now the Ninja of Ice, could do nothing but stare dumbstruck at his new weapons.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Some people have been wondering if ****_Once Bitten, New Life_**** is still being continued. It still is! Since the plot mainly follows the events of the canon episodes, I need to find the episode ****_All or Nothing_**** to do my background research for my next chapter. So, until I can find it, I'll be working mostly on ****_The Power Swap._**** Be prepared for next chapter, a new villain will show up, making life even more complicated for Lord Garmadon and the ninja. Virtual cookies to anyone who guesses who! Anyways, this chapter will finally reveal the Green Ninja… Diclaimer: I don't own Ninjago. **

* * *

The weapon passing continued, with Cole and Jay having swapped powers. It was odd, Cole reflected, holding Jay's nunchucks. What was he supposed to do with them?

He held the nunchucks by one handle out in front of him, letting the rest of the weapon dangle. They hissed and crackled in protest, lightning energy racing up and down the cord that bound the two handles together. He could still remember the way they felt in his hands when he first picked them up; the way they had seemed to come to life in his hands, sending a rush of energy through his body.

Now they felt useless, their initial powers having subsided. He was Cole, Ninja of Earth. Sure, he had seen Jay using his nunchucks, but he had never paid attention to_ how_ he had used them!

"You're holding them wrong!" Jay protested, setting down the Scythe of Quakes and taking the nunchucks from Cole. "You hold them like this." he held the golden lightning weapons up, using a two-handed grip.

"Okay…" the black ninja uncertainately took back the nunchucks, adjusting his grip to match Jay's. "Like this?"

The blue ninja nodded and sighed. "Yeah, like that." Jay absentmindedly swung his new scythe, missing the lightweight feel of his- no, _Cole's_- nunchucks. The scythe was too bulky and heavy for him, and as hard and unyeilding as the rocks it symbolized.

He shuddered, remembering the way the scythe had made him feel when he had touched it. Gone was the free spirited vitality of lightning; it had been replaced by the heavy responsibility of earth. His new element imposed upon him a sense of unshakable courage and leadership.

_Is this how Cole always feels? _He wondered to himself. _I don't think I have what it takes to control earth! I'm the guy who always goofs off and makes jokes- Cole's the leader! Mature and accountable are the _last _words people would use to describe me! _

"What about Lloyd?" inquired Kai, pocketing the Shurikens of Ice. "He still doesn't have any powers." The former Green Ninja looked lost and miserable, reminding the others of his true age. Although he had physically grown up, he was still just a little kid deep inside.

"Impossibe." Zane murmered, "It can't be…"

"What?" Lloyd was jerked out of his reverie, and looked to Zane hopefully.

"It appears that we have all swapped powers with the person we came in contact with."

Cole blanched. "Oh no… That means that Dareth is the Green Ninja."

"So I do have super cool powers? Awesome!" everyone turned towards Dareth. The new Green Ninja awkwardly stopped in mid cheer and cleared his throat. "Ahem… I mean, rest assured." The incompetent sensei slicked back his hair. "I, Grand Sensei Dareth, will be the most awesome and incredible ninja of all time. You forget, I know the Way of the Penguin. Hiya!"

With that, Dareth spun around. His foot got caught on a dumbbell left carelessly strewn on the ground, causing him to flail wildly. Backing up, he bumped into the Scythe of Quakes, which Jay had propped up against Dareth's trophy collection table.

The scythe teetered dangerously for a split second, then fell over. "Look out!" Cole cried, jumping out of the way of the scythe. With a resounding CRASH, it hit the ground. The force of the blow shook the dojo, creating a long crack in the floor.

"It's official!" Jay picked up the scythe. "We are so hooped!"

No one contradicted him.

"We really need to find a way to get Garmadon to turn us back. Or better yet, take that Mega Weapon from him." moaned Kai.

"We can't take the Mega Weapon from him, Kai." stated Zane. "No one person can control the power of all four weapons at once. The only reason Lord Garmadon can is because he has four arms."

At last Lloyd found his voice. "What do we do now?" the former Green Ninja looked to Sensei Wu. "My dad will never willingly undo this."

"The only thing you all can do, Lloyd." Sensei Wu refilled his tea cup, hands shaking ever so slightly. "Train, and prepare to face Lord Garmadon in the future. He will attack, whether all of you are ready or not."

Dareth gulped. Suddenly, having the fate of Ninjago resting on his shoulders made his incredible new powers a lot less appealing.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: Two chapters in one day! I am on a roll! I've just had so much time to write, in between having no school and the weather being too nasty to go anywhere. This might be my last chapter for a while, since I plan on just relaxing the rest of my break. So, merry Christmas and a happy New Year! Remember to review, follow, and vote on my poll! I'll be back next year! Disclaimer: Why would I be writing fanfiction if I owned Ninjago?**

* * *

"Alright everybody, let's get training!" said Cole. "I'll teach Jay about earth, and he can teach me about lightning."

"I can show Lloyd how to fight without using the power of Spinjitsu."Nya offered. "I have tons of different weapons to choose from." She smiled encouragingly at Lloyd.

"Alright." Lloyd agreed listlessly.

"I'll even let you do some training with the Samurai suit."

"Really?" the former Green Ninja brightened up considerably. "But you've never let anyone else use your Samurai suit before, not even Kai or Jay!" Lloyd grinned, finally he was getting to do something the others hadn't! Perhaps training with Nya wouldn't be that bad after all.

"I've had a hard time adjusting to the power swap too." Jay shot Nya his most innocent smile. "Does that mean that I get to try out your Samurai suit as well?"

The red samurai smirked. "Nice try, but no."

With that, she and Lloyd left to train in hand-to-hand combat.

Jay watched her leave, a goofy grin still plastered on his face. "What?" he demanded, at last turning back to the group. "You can't blame a guy for trying!"

Dareth eagerly raised his hand. "What do I get to do?"

"As the Green Ninja, it's best that you stay safe." Cole explained.

_And not to mention, you'd probably destroy the dojo in an attempt to do Spinjitsu. You with uncontrollable powers is the last thing we need right now. _Kai added silently.

"We'll all focus on training on each other first. Then we'll show you what to do."

_With luck, we'll all be back to normal before that happens._

Dareth nodded decisively, apparently satisfied with that explanation.

"And I will begin teaching Kai how to use ice." despite having mastered fire, Zane was as cool and collected as ever. Kai felt a flash of envy; Zane had already mastered his new element. He was starting to feel like he was trying to find his true potential all over again. Would he be the last to unlock his power this time too?

"Okay." the former fire ninja replied to Zane, feigning a confidence he didn't feel. "You managed to use fire; how hard can it be to use ice?"

* * *

The sun burned hot over the Sea of Sand. All seemed deathly still in the desert except for four people, whose figures were only faint outlines against the open sky. They may as well have been mirages, their silhouettes shimmering in the heat. If one crept close enough, they would find themselves confronted not with people, but with snakes.

"What now?" questioned Skalidor, the shortest and stockiest of the four. He peered around anxiously, as if fearful of some unknown enemy was watching.

This move did not go unnoticed by his comrades. "I've told you once, I've told you a thoussand timesss!" hissed Acidicus, leader of the Venomari. "Lord Garmadon iss not watching usss! We are not ssstupid enough to get caught."

The Constrictai leader rolled his eyes. "Of course. You can see everything, Four Eyes."

"Dirt Eater!"

"Swamp Creeper!"

"Enough!" snapped Skales, irked by his fellow generals insulting each other like hatchlings. Couldn't they solve this like snakes?

"Now lissten clossely. All we need to do iss convince Lord Garmadon to ssumon the ancient Stone Army, and we will be one sstep closser to ruling Ninjago oursselvess. It shouldn't be too hard, considering hiss already inflated ego."

"And why should we lissten to you?" Challenged Fangtom. Clearly, the Fangpyre general had not forgiven him for betraying him to Pythor all those months ago. "Why do we want him to ssumon the Ssstone Army? That'll just give _him_ a bigger army._"_

All the snakes knew without a doubt who _he _was.

"That's on a need-to-know basis, my dear Fangtom." the Hypnobrai leered, sounding remarkably like Pythor himself. "And you don't need to know."

Fangtom scowled. The Serpentine generals exchanged weighted glances. Very few snakes trusted Skales, but since when had the Serpentine been fair? Besides, nothing was more insulting than being ruled by a human like Lord Garmadon. If he could still be considered human, that is.

"Very well." Each tribe leader gave their consent. They would throw their lots in with the Hypnobrai, for better or for worse.

Elated by his success, Skales returned to Garmadon. The dark lord sat in the shade of a snake bus, fanned by lowly Serpentine scouts.

"This better be important." he snapped, shooing away the fan bearers.

Skales dipped his hooded head. "It isss… I believe I have an idea on how you may conquer Ninjago." _Remain humble and submissive. Patience. _He reminded himself.

"Go on."

"Why don't you sssumon the Sstone Army? They are almosst invincibe-" he broke off, confused. Garmadon was laughing! The Hypnobrai waited with bated breath.

"Yes, that is an excellent idea." the dark lord chuckled. "Mega Weapon; I wish for you to summon the Stone Army!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: I hope everyone had a happy New Year, who can believe that it's 2014? I know it's been awhile since my last update, but I'm finally back and writing! **

**Garmadon: You survived…wonderful. *Sighs and rolls his eyes***

**NorthAmericanJauar: Yep. And a happy New Year to you too.**

**Skales: Happy Year of the Sssnake, everybody! **

**Garmadon: What's HE doing here? Is this becoming a villain talk show or something?**

**NorthAmericanJaguar: Umm… actually, it's the Year of the Rabbit…**

**Skales: *Glares venomously in my direction.* **

**NorthAmericanJaguar: *Laughs nervously* I mean… Happy Year of the Snake to you too!**

**Garmadon: Just like last year, NorthAmericanJaguar still doesn't own Ninjago.**

* * *

"Deep breath in, deep breath out."

Kai fidgeted on his meditation mat. For the past hour he had been practicing meditating with Zane, in hopes that the calm may unlock the ice within.

Barely stifling a groan, the former fire ninja shifted his stance in an attempt to ease the aching in his right leg. For how long had they been standing in Tree Stance? A few minutes? Half an hour? Zane seemed oblivious to his discomfort, balanced and motionless on one foot. With eyes closed and face raised up towards the ceiling, the former ice ninja was the very image of serenity.

Inhale.

Exhale.

_This is pointless!_ Kai clenched his fists, tempted to throw the meditation mat across the room and storm out. _We're wasting our time. Instead of finding Garmadon and trying to get ourselves back to normal, what are we doing? Trying to learn about an element that isn't even ours! _Kai stopped, feeling slightly guilty for his internal outburst. _On the bright side, at least Dareth is staying out of trouble…_

* * *

Dareth flopped down on the couch. Like the rest of his furniture, the couch was a vintage collector's item. Tastefully positioned, the patent leather couch was placed where the one seated could easily eye his trophies. Even if they where fake, they where so beautiful. Yes, it certainly had taken him a long time to get the couch at just the right angle; but it was totally worth it.

_Maybe I should paint the room green…_He mused. _After all, I am the Green Ninja. Besides, the green would definitely bring out the gold in my trophies. _

His mind made up, Dareth made his way to the telephone. If he wanted help painting his entire dojo, he was going to need to hire a lot of help.

"Hello? I, Grand Sensei Dareth, am going to need to hire a bunch of professional painters…" After completing his call, he hung up with an air of satisfaction.

_In the meantime, I'll start getting the paint together. _Rummaging through his supplies cabinet, he found several cans of ivy and shamrock green paint. A grin spread across the incompetent sensei's face. The ninja where going to be so surprised!

Moments after Dareth had finished gathering up his supplies, there came a rather violent knock on the door. "Huh." The brown sensei shrugged, thinking out loud. "Those painters sure came early."

Setting down the cans of paint, he opened the door.

The incompetent Sensei gave a start of surprise upon seeing who it was standing on his front steps. The stranger was tall and fierce, with skin as rough as sandpaper and clad in ancient armour. Black symbols were tattooed across the warrior's face, a stark contrast to the natural paleness of its skin. Glowing eyes and a razor-edged sword only enhanced the being's fearsome persona.

Dareth blinked in surprise. "Hello there. You must be the painter I called for. I love the costume by the way, it looks very er… authentic. Kinda like a warrior of the Stone Army."

The being, which was in fact a Stone Warrior, blinked in surprise. Its master had ordered it to attack Ninjago City, to send the humans running for their lives. Why was this measly human not scared of it? If there was one thing the Stone Warrior prided itself in, it was being scary.

"Tuki?" it asked, more confused than angry.

"What are you standing around for?" Dareth ushered the Stone Warrior inside the dojo. "You got a job to do!"

"Makashi do!" yelled the Stone Warrior, raising its sword. How dare the human touch it? For that the human would die!

Dareth quickly grabbled the sword and yanked it out of the its grasp. "I'll take this." he tossed the blade on a nearby shelf. "Because you'll be painting with this." He thrust a paint roller and a paint can into the Stone Warrior's arms.

The Warrior simply stared at the incompetent sensei, too stunned to resist.

"Don't worry, you'll get it back at the end of the day." said Dareth, misreading the Stone Warrior's expression.

With that, Dareth picked up a paint bucket of his own and began painting the closest wall. The Stone Warrior shook its head, beginning to recover from its surprise. The human was so involved in his work, he was not paying attention at all to what it was doing. The human sat with his back to it, humming tunelessly to himself. So trusting.

With this in mind, the Stone Warrior slowly made its way to the sword on the shelf.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: I just realized I barely have anything from Jay or Lloyd's POV, so I'm definitely going to have to work on that in upcoming chapters. However, that shouldn't be too hard considering how many POVs this fanfic is told from. Even the Stone Warrior had somewhat of an input in the story. Which, BTW, I had no idea how to write the language of the Stone Army. I just simply typed in a few nonsense words and hoped for the best. As usual, constructive criticism is always appreciated. Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

* * *

"It's not funny!" Cole protested.

Jay was doubled over, laughing so hard that tears ran down his cheeks. "Of course it's funny! You managed to-" the former lightning ninja gasped between breaths. "-to shock yourself with the nunchucks! Even _I _have never done that!"

Cole glared at the nunchucks, as if it was all their fault Jay was laughing at him. The offending weapons were currently lying harmlessly on the ground, having been thrown nearly halfway across the room by the former earth ninja after nearly frying him.

Self consciously, he ran his hands through his hair. Not only had those nunchucks zapped him, but they had left him with the worst static hair in the history of Ninjago. Cole felt like he had tried everything- water, his hands, even becoming desperate enough to steal a container of Dareth's styling gel- but no matter what he did, his hair would not stay flat.

"Awww… lighten up!" complained Jay. "Have you seen yourself in a mirror?"

"No," Cole huffed. "and I really don't think I want to. If you want to master earth, you need to learn to take things seriously."

"I can be serious…"

The former earth ninja shot Jay a doubtful stare.

"…sometimes."

Jay sighed. At least he hadn't had any catastrophes with the Scythe of Quakes. That had to count towards something, right? Why did earth have to be so hard? He hated the feeling of being grounded, the sheer pressure and responsibility was overwhelming. As Cole tried in vain to straighten his hair, Jay spun the scythe around absent-mindedly in his hands.

"Can you stop that?" asked Cole. "It's really distracting." Spinning the scythe had become a habit of the blue ninja, and the habit was quickly becoming one of Cole's pet peeves.

"It makes me feel young, deal with it." retorted the blue ninja, in no better mood than his brother. Whirling the scythe reminded him of the spinning motion of his old nunchucks. The motion was oddly comforting.

A scream came from downstairs, followed by a loud crash.

"Dareth!" both ninja said in unison. Their fight forgotten, they picked up their respective Golden Weapons and dashed downstairs.

The brown sensei had been backed into a corner, the angry Stone Warrior advancing on him with sword in hand.

"What? You're not happy with your pay?" Dareth trembled, addressing the Stone Warrior. "Here- I'll give you this amazing lamp!" he snatched a lamp off a nearby desk and held it out to the Stone Warrior. The warrior bared its teeth in rage and swung its sword, cutting the lamp in two.

"Yeah," Dareth chuckled nervously. "I never liked that lamp either."

Kai, Zane, Nya, and Lloyd came running into the room. Apparently they had heard the crash too.

"Guys, what is that?" asked Lloyd.

Zane narrowed his eyes. "It appears to be a Stone Warrior, although I have no idea how it got here. The Stone Army was banished from Ninjago a long time ago."

"Well, I don't care how it got here-because it's going to be in pieces here in a few minutes!" Kai unsheathed his shurikens and charged towards the Stone Warrior.

"Kai, no!" called Zane. "You cannot defeat the Stone Warrior. They are-"

The former fire ninja hurled the Shurikens of Ice at the warrior. They spun through the air as twin golden blurs, striking the Stone Warrior. Much to everyone but Zane's alarm, the shurikens bounced off the warrior, leaving it unharmed.

"-indestructible."

The Stone Warrior turned towards Kai. Before the red ninja could react, the warrior picked him up as easily as if he were a rag doll and threw him across the room. With a sickening thud, he hit a wall and lay still.

Something inside Jay snapped. His friends- no, his brothers- were getting hurt and he was doing nothing about it. They where his _team._They were his _responsibility._ As long as he was standing, that Stone Warrior was going to need to do a lot more damage to defeat him. But what could he do to defeat an indestructible warrior?

Newfound strength flowed into Jay's body, and he accepted it. The butterflies in his stomach settled down, and were replaced with a quiet yet unshakable courage. Deep down, he knew what was happening. This was what it meant to control earth.

"NINJA GO!" he cried, surrounding himself in a brown tornado. The blue ninja felt like laughing; he was actually doing it! He had mastered earth!

The Stone Warrior looked up in astonishment, but by then it was too late. The Spinjitsu tornado collided with it head-on, sending it flying through the window and out into the street.

Jay came to a stop.

"Na karibo!" shouted the Stone Warrior, shaking one fist angrily. The four ninja, Lloyd, and Nya braced themselves for the warrior's second attack. But before it had even moved one step, a car sped across the street, barreling into the Stone Warrior. They watched as the car became a mere dot on the horizon, carrying the Stone Warrior with it.

"Well," Cole smiled, proudly nudging Jay on the arm. "I doubt we'll be seeing that Stone Warrior again anytime soon."


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Dear Isla-Robin-295, I know that the fact that the ninja still have their elemental weapons is impossible. I figured that out in chapter three… *face palms.* However, I felt that the golden weapons were important to the storyline so at the top of the chapter I basically left a summary explaining that the ninja discovered replicas in an old forgotten temple (they seem to have a lot of those in Ninjago!) similar to the light temple. It's out of cannon, but it was the best reason I could come up with. Anyways, I'm glad you pointed that out. It shows that not only where you reading the story, but you were thinking it through! Disclaimer: If I owned Ninjago, why on Earth would I be on fanfiction?**

* * *

"Lloyd? Are you paying attention to me?"

"Huh?" the former Green Ninja was jolted from his reverie by an irritated Nya.

_Scratch that, _Lloyd thought nervously. _I've been interrupted by_ _an angry_ _Nya._

The red Samurai looked frazzled, a stray strand of hair poked out from beneath her helmet and her hands were on her hips. Since she no longer had her protective mask on, he was easily able to see the scowl forming ever so slightly on her lips. Once again, Lloyd felt like a like a little boy being chastised for stealing from a candy shop.

"Are you sure your feeling all right?" Nya sheathed her sword, and brushed the stray strand out of her face. "You haven't been focused on what I'm trying to teach you all day."

"I'm fine." He mumbled, sheathing his own sword. "Just tired, that's all." and that certainly wasn't a lie, considering that they had been doing weapons training all morning. True to her word, Nya had allowed him to try out the Samurai suit earlier that morning.

However, they quickly moved on to other things after he had nearly flown the suit into a skyscraper. "Sorry, Lloyd." Nya had said "But we just don't have the money to pay that kind of property damage." After that, they had experimented with what felt like every possible weapon in Ninjago; throwing stars, swords, spears, daggers, axes, and even a double-sided scythe.

Eventually, they had decided that he should keep the sword. It was a thicker, more heavy weapon than the ninja's old katanas; but Lloyd could not deny that it just simply felt _right_ in his hands. From then on they had been working on swordsmanship, the only interruption being when Dareth was attacked by a Stone Warrior.

Every muscle in his body ached; he had never had to train so hard in his life before! It made him realize how easy the others had really gone on him when he was a little kid. In retrospect, this made all of his previous training look easy.

"Can we take a break?" _It's not like the fate of Ninjago rests on my shoulders anymore; if I don't train, the world isn't going to end because of it. _"Please?" he pressed, giving her the most pitiful expression he could muster.

He waited with bated breath as Nya decided.

"Alright then, I guess you earned it." she glanced at her watch. "Besides, it's nearly nine thirty. The other guys are probably getting ready for bed right now."

"Yes!" cheered Lloyd, sprinting out of the room. "Freedom!"

He dashed up the staircase. "Thanks, Nya!" he added as an afterthought.

"No problem! I'll be upstairs in a minute; I just need to get the training course cleaned up."

Intent on getting to the spare bedroom, the former Green Ninja was not paying attention to where he was going. He simply sped up the stairs taking them two at a time until- WHAM! He collided with a white blur that had been running from the other direction.

"Ow!" muttered the white garbed figure. Lloyd frowned in confusion, the speaker was not Zane. In fact, he only knew one person who could manage to put that much attitude into a single syllable…

"Kai? Why are you wearing Zane's ninja suit?"

"Oh, uh… no reason. Weren't you supposed to be training with Nya?" the former fire ninja stammered, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. Giving a skeptical snort, Lloyd folded his arms across his chest. Something was telling him that Kai did_ not_ have permission to be wearing Zane's suit.

A voice from behind him spoke. "Hey, what's the hold up?"

Lloyd turned around, and saw Cole and Jay waiting at the foot of the staircase. Cole's brows knit in bewilderment. "And is that Kai wearing Zane's suit?"

The former earth ninja sighed. "Wait- don't tell me. Kai, are you wearing Zane's suit because you're hoping it will help you find your potential? Kind of like how you did with the Green Ninja suit before Lloyd joined the team?"

Zane emerged from the ninja's shared bedroom in his pajamas. Kai looked more embarrassed than he did before, if that where even possible. Underneath the white mask, Lloyd was sure that the former fire ninja's face was as red as the element he used to control.

"Oh. So that is where my suit went." Zane stared calmly at Kai for a moment. "If you wanted to borrow my suit, all you needed to do was ask."

"Ooh! I got an idea!" Jay eagerly waved his hand. "Why don't we all switch suits so that we match our new elements?" Seeing the other's dumbfounded expressions, he grew more defensive. "What? Being weird is a side effect of being awesome; deal with it. Besides, it would look so cool and make Cole look less goth!"

"Hey! I am NOT goth!"

"Jay has made a logical statement," added Zane. "You do wear a lot of black. I for one think that this could be an interesting experience."

"I'm in!" Kai volunteered, relaxing now that the attention had been turned somewhat from him.

Cole shrugged. "Okay, sounds fine by me. Starting tomorrow; we got new outfits."


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: You know how at the beginning of the story how I said that this was going to be a short fanfic? Yeah… That was kind of a fail. Originally, I had expected this story to be about ten chapters long. However, between comments left by reviewers and my own personal spurts of inspiration, this story has sorta taken on a life of its own! For example, I really hadn't given much thought to whether or not the ninja should switch addition, the whole Dareth and the Stone Warrior incident wasn't in my original story outline either. I've also spent a few nights at the computer deleting scenes that I wasn't happy with and totally rewriting them. For example: When I posted the poll for the Power Swap, Nya was originally going to become the Green Ninja. Then I changed it to Dareth, realizing it would be funnier that way. And in chapter nine, I almost made Cole responsible for the defeat of the Stone Warrior before deciding on Jay. Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago.**

* * *

"Sssso, the Stone Warrior's attack on the new Green Ninja failed?" Skales hissed irritably. "Why doessss that not ssurprisse me?"

Skalidor scratched his scaly chin, contemplating. "Uh… 'causse none of any of Lord Gaarmadon's plansss ever work like they're ssupposed to?"

Fangtom rolled his eyes in annoyance at his fellow general's stupidity. "That vosss a rhetorical question, you fool." His left head snapped crossly.

"Oh. Well, how wasss I ssupossed to know?"

Barely suppressing a sigh, Skales knew that he was going to have to defuse the situation before a fight broke out between the two tribes. As second in command, the Hypnobrai general had been envious of Pythor's power and total control over the four Serpentine tribes. But honestly; how had the Anacondrai been able to keep them from arguing every minute of the day? It had barely been three days since the generals had last convened for one of their private meetings, and he had to intervene twice already between Fangtom and Skalidor alone!

"Enough!" he snapped, lashing his tail angrily. "If we can't desstroy the ninja while they're in Ninjago City, then we are going to have to lure them here."

* * *

"There's been another Serpentine sighting just outside of Ninjago!" called Nya.

"Coming!" responded Jay. "Just a minute!"

"Another mission?" Dareth strutted into the room, slicking back his hair. "This looks like a job for the Green Ninja!" the incompetent sensei flailed his arms in what only he would view as an intimidating form of karate. "HIYA!"

Every lightbulb in the room flared to life for a split second before simultaneously exploding. The red samurai quickly covered her eyes as small shards of glass flew across the room. Waiting for a moment to be sure that Dareth was done with his karate display, Nya slowly brought her face up from her palms.

Her eyes widened in shock at what she saw. The room had been plunged into semi-darkness, with every single light fixture rendered useless. Though he was incapable of Spinjitsu, Dareth's newfound elemental powers where beginning to manifest themselves in small ways. Today he was harnessing the element of lightning, how long would it be until he used fire?

Nya shuddered; Dareth and fire were not a good mix.

"Did you see that?" the brown sensei grinned proudly, oblivious to the damage he had just caused to his own home. "That there is a little something that I like to call 'The Way of The Dragon.' Pretty impressive, don't you think?"

"Oh yeah, very…" Nya managed, not trusting herself to say anymore. This "power swap" situation was getting out of hand- quickly.

"We're here, sis." Kai peered cautiously through the doorway. "Why's it so dark in here?"

"Because I, Grand Sensei Dareth, the Green Ninja, used the Way of The Dragon!"

Seeing her brother's confused expression, Nya clarified. "Dareth's began tapping into his elemental powers. Lightning, to be exact. Speaking of lightning, how are Jay and Cole doing? Has Cole unlocked his powers yet?"

"Not yet. He says he feels really close though." the former fire ninja shrugged.

_And how are you doing, Kai? _ Nya wondered. The question hung in the air, unspoken, yet neither sibling attempted to address it. There were few things that Nya did not talk about with her brother; but she had a feeling that this was one of those things.

"What's wrong?" Cole raced into the room. "Has that Stone Warrior come back?"

She shook her head "no" before noticing Cole's outfit. "Is that Jay's ninja suit? It makes you look so-"

"-not goth?" Jay chimed in. The former lightning ninja smiled. Like Cole, he too was dressed differently. Instead of his usual cheerful blue, he wore Cole's black guise.

_Well, I guess that he is the Ninja of Earth now. _

She moved closer to the doorway to get a closer look at each ninja. Kai was wearing Zane's white suit, while the former ice ninja himself stood a little further away, covered from head to toe in red. Lloyd though had opted to remain in his usual green robes.

_That's probably a good thing, no need to inflate Dareth's ego any more than it is already. _Nya reflected.

Turning her attention back to Jay, she returned his smile. "I was going to say different, but I guess that less goth also works. You look great as well, by the way."

Her boyfriend got that faraway look in his eyes. "Thanks, you look great too."

"Alright, lovebirds." interrupted Cole. "Break it up! So what are we up against?"

Nya began picking some of the glass pieces on the floor. "The Serpentine, as usual. The generals of all four tribes were sighted just west of Ninjago City."

"Can I come?" everyone turned to see Lloyd standing almost dejectedly behind them. "My sword skills have been getting better."

"It is still too dangerous, Lloyd." Zane put a consoling hand on his young friend's shoulder. "We cannot risk losing you. When our powers return, you will once again be the Green Ninja."

"Are you sure you're fine with handling Dareth on your own?" asked Kai, glancing over to where Dareth was trying to replicate his "Way of The Dragon."

"I'll be fine, go fight snakes."

With that, the four ninja dashed out of the dojo.

"I sense that something is wrong." Zane said frown.

"C'mon, Zane." Kai rolled his eyes. "This is the Serpentine we're talking about. What's the worst that could happen?"


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: Midterm studies have taken up most of my free time, but I'm still trying to squeeze in updates every now and then. Not to mention, my birthday is next week. I'm proud of this chapter- it's the longest chapter I've ever written for a fanfic, so enjoy! Disclaimer: How many times do we have to go over this? I do not own Ninjago.**

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"Remind me again, why are we taking the metro?" asked Kai, paging through a newspaper a previous passenger had been lying on his seat. Although he would never admit it, Cole had to agree that taking the subway train had certainly not been their best or brightest idea. The ninja had boarded the train at rush hour, and were currently pressed up against the hordes of people on their way to work.

A man behind Cole heaved a briefcase up onto a storage rack, narrowly missing the former earth ninja's head. Other passengers snuck not-so-subtle glances at the oddly dressed teens sharing their compartment, while others openly stared.

_Well, this isn't awkward at all._ He shifted, trying to make himself more comfortable in the crowd. Cole had never considered himself a claustrophobic person, and while he never liked large groups, he didn't hate them either.

_That all changed when I inherited lightning as my new element._ He thought wryly. Jay's constant fidgeting had always gotten on the former earth ninja's nerves, but now Cole felt like he could sympathize with the former Ninja of Lightning. He could practically _feel _the energy coursing through him, crackling and setting all his nerves on edge; he just couldn't harness it!

He was close though, close enough to visualize the signature blue of lightning Spinjitsu. But how could he unlock it?

_You're trying too hard! _He could almost hear Jay complaining. _You've gotta just relax and have fun with it! _

"Because the Serpentine where last seen headed towards down town Ninjago; if we take the metro we might be able to beat them there, and set up a little ambush of our own." Cole explained, careful to keep the concern out of his voice.

Sure, the Serpentine weren't the sharpest tools in the shed, but what could they possibly have to gain by attacking downtown Ninjago City? He shook his head, brushing the bangs out of his eyes. It just didn't add up. However, he and the team couldn't _not_ follow the Serpentine, all four of the snake generals had shown up on the radar!

But what would they do if Lord Garmadon showed up? He and Kai still hadn't unlocked their elements yet. If push came to shove, Zane and Jay would be the only ones capable of doing Spinjitsu. Worry twisted in his gut, writhing like the Great Devourer.

"I sense something is wrong." said Zane, peering anxiously out of the train window. The nindroid's stance was ready, as if he was expecting an unseen enemy to come flying into the crowded compartment any second.

Cole narrowed his eyes, straining to see as well. Zane's sixth sense was uncanny, if he said that they should be worried about some imminent danger, that was most likely the case. Kai rolled his eyes and went back to reading the news.

The metro continued rocketing through the dimly lit tunnel, illuminating the subway's weathered brick walls. All was quiet; with the only sounds being the low murmuring of voices and the clattering sound of the train racing down the tracks.

Suddenly and without warning, the metro lurched to one side. Still hurdling down its monorail at top speed, the left side of the train scraped up against the tunnel's wall, sparking and screeching in protest. It was all happening to quickly- Cole reached out his hands to brace for the impact but slammed into the side of the compartment before he could react.

Pain ran through his jaw where it had struck the wall as he sat up. "What just happened?"

"The Serpentine!" Jay leapt to his feet, and pointed out the window. "They switched the tracks!"

The four ninja made their way to the window, just in time to see two Constrictai scouts disappear into one of the station's many terminals.

"That's not too bad, right? If Garmadon thinks that making us get off at the wrong stop is going to stop us from reaching him and his snake minions, he's wrong." Kai pointed out. "We'll just have to wait to get off once the train slows down."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, Kai." said Zane. "According to the data I accessed from the subway's blue prints, we are currently heading towards a construction site at top speed. If we cannot stop this train before it runs out of tracks, none of us will get off alive."

"What happened to the metro's conductor?" asked the former fire ninja. "Can't he stop this thing?"

The former ice ninja shook his head no. "This metro is programmed on autopilot. It will not stop until it reaches its destination."

"Great." grumbled Jay. "When other people are in trouble, it's because they fall asleep and miss their stop! But no, that's too simple. We had to get sabotaged by Serpentine!"

"So how do we stop the metro?" demanded Cole, cutting the former lightning ninja's rambling short.

The staccato rattling of the tracks seemed to speed up as they raced ever closer to the construction site. Cole could see a neon yellow sign rapidly approaching. On it was the skull and crossbones and bold print declaring DANGER, DO NOT ENTER.

An idea slowly began to come to mind, but it seemed so impossible that the former earth ninja nearly pushed it away. However, they were running out of tracks. Fast.

Surely a far-fetched idea was better that none?

"Do you guys remember how when we fought the Great Devourer, Zane used his ice to create pathways for us to run across?"

His brothers all nodded in agreement.

"I think we should try to do that again. But this time, the ice needs to be used to create a new path for the train. Basically, we need to make new tracks to try and get this tin can over all the construction work."

"But Zane can't control ice anymore!" shouted Jay.

"I wasn't talking about Zane."

Slowly, three pairs of eyes fixed themselves on a very anxious looking Kai.


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note: Gotta love snow days… They've given me more time to work on this story! I really don't have much else to say this chapter but vote my polls and thanks for taking the time to read this fanfic. This is kind of a short chapter, so I'm sorry about that. Next one will be longer, I promise! I'm always open for constructive criticism and feedback. Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago.**

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"Oh, how am I going to do this?" Kai muttered, shaking his head. He clung to the outside of the metro, hanging on for dear life- literally!

One false step and he would lose his already shaky purchase on the sleek sides of the train, and be crushed by the next metro that happened to come along. That is, if the impact of hitting the tunnel's cement ground alone didn't finish him off first.

Yep, just a typical day in the life of an average ninja.

"Just a few more steps, and I'll be at the front of the train." the former fire ninja told himself, trying not to think about _what _ he would have to do once he got there.

Careful to keep his foothold on the ridged side of the rail car- the ridge that separated him from falling to his death- Kai made his way to the front of the train. The wind tore at his face, flattening him against the cold metal surface. Plastered like an insect against the windshield of a car.

_Come on, you can do this! _He forced his eyes open against the onslaught of air. Trapped between the frigid gale and the icy steel of the metro, he shivered. The trembling of his hands was from more than an adrenaline rush.

The danger sign was drawing closer. Behind the sign, there was nothing but a sheer drop into darkness. Soon he would be out of time.

Kai's heart rate quickened. _I can't do this! If I fail, Ninjago is doomed! Who will be there to train Lloyd? _Besides, Dareth becoming the Green Ninja permanently was something that he was prepared to handle.

_Not on my watch! _The former fire ninja vowed. Oddly, thought was strangely comforting.

A wave of calm washed over Kai. With it came peace; acceptance. Was this his true potential?

He slid the shurikens out of his belt. The golden weapons seemed to respond to his touch, awakening with a subtle hum of tranquil energy. For the first time since Kai had held them, the shurikens felt _right_ in his hands.

"Ice!" he shouted with all his might, as he had seen Zane do dozens of times. The metro rushed closer and closer to the precipice, and he grit his teeth fearing that he was too late but then-

Ice materialized across the chasm, and the train charged across as if nothing out of the usual had happened. Weak in the knees with relief, Kai heaved a huge sigh of relief. Zane couldn't have done better himself.

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Zane braced himself for impact. It was not that he didn't have faith in his brother, it was just that the odds of Kai being able to unlock the power of ice on demand _and _under pressure, were very low. Under eight percent, to be exact.

So it came as a relief when the train continued on its course, not even changing pace as it glided along the ice.

"I can't believe it!" Cole managed. "He actually did it. Kai mastered ice!"

"We're not gonna die!" cheered Jay.

Several passengers gave the former lightning ninja concerned looks and stepped back a few paces. Most of them hadn't even known that the Serpentine had switched the tracks and were under the impression that the metro was still on its scheduled route.

The emergency door in the back of the compartment slid open. In stumbled Kai, his windblown hair even more wild than usual.

Zane walked over to the former fire ninja. "How did you manage to unlock your Potential?"

"I don't know." Kai frowned thoughtfully. "I guess that up until now I was so busy trying to _become _the Ninja of Ice that I didn't let it become a part of me."

"That's sweet. You wanna know what I learned?" Cole cut in. "That we're still no closer to finding Garmadon than we were before."

"I think some one's jealous." Jay grinned.

"Of everyone else unlocking their Potential before me?" The former earth ninja glanced at his team before giving a soft sigh. "Alright, fine. I'm a little jealous. I'm the team leader, but how can I lead when I can't even do Spinjitsu?"

Zane blinked in confusion. That was what Cole was upset about?

"We believe in you, whether you can do Spinjitsu or not." he placed a hand on his brother's shoulder. "And we will find Garmadon."

"Yeah," Kai smirked. "and when we do, we'll find a way to get changed back to normal. Now who's with me?"

The four ninja raised their weapons above their heads and shouted; "NINJA GO!"

"Kids these days." an old woman sharing their compartment rolled her eyes and shook her head in disappointment.


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: My first Nya POV. Enjoy! Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago.**

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Twenty-two times, Nya reflected. Twenty-two times in the last four and a half hours had Dareth shown her his trophy collection. Lloyd had wandered off after his fourteenth display, under the pretense of "going to train some more."

More likely, he had gone off to go save his remaining sanity from Dareth. She was tempted to as well, if only she hadn't promised the ninja that she would look after the incompetent brown sensei. If something happened to him, how would Lloyd ever get his powers back?

_And I thought fighting snakes could be challenging! _

Nya nodded her head in an attempt to look interested in what Dareth had to say, and resisted the urge to roll her eyes and tell him that _yes_, she was aware he had an entire shelf dedicated to his trophies and _yes, _he has already asked her if she had any trophies of her own.

_He's worse than Jay was on our first date._ She smiled faintly at the memory of them going to the Mega Monster Amusement Park. All Jay had done was talk about himself for the most of the first part of their date, up until it got crashed by the Serpentine, she got chained to a rollercoaster, and Jay slowly began turning into a snake.

Life with the ninja certainly kept things interesting. How would she ever get back to living an ordinary life after all of this? It wasn't like she could put "fighting evil" and "Samurai" on her resume for previous experiences and job history.

For what felt like the thousandth time that day, she found herself gazing out the window. Where where Jay and Kai and the rest of the team right now?

"…and this trophy here I won fighting off fifty bandits with only my bare hands." Dareth proudly set down the last trophy in his collection back on the shelf before turning to Nya. The he slicked back his hair and struck a pose, oblivious to the fact that Nya wasn't paying attention. "I'm just that good."

"I'm going to check on Lloyd, okay?" Nya said, at last pulling her gaze away from the window. It had been awhile since she had seen the former Green Ninja, part of her wondered if he had left the dojo.

_Please don't let him have snuck off to fight snakes…_The red Samurai begged to no one in particular. _The last thing we need is for Lloyd to have pulled a Kai while I was busy watching Dareth! _

"Lloyd? LLOYD!" she went upstairs to the ninja's shared bedroom. The lights were off, the room was vacant. A rising panic rose in her chest. Where was Lloyd?

"I'm right here." turning around, she came face to face with Lloyd. The former Green Ninja had his sword drawn, clearly confused on what was making her so upset. "Why were you yelling?"

Nya shook her head, relieved that Lloyd was still safe. Next time, the ninja were so getting babysitting duty. "You weren't downstairs, and I was starting to think you'd ran off to go fight your father."

Lloyd relaxed sheathing his sword. "I haven't gone anywhere. I think I just saw Dareth leave the dojo, though."

"What?" he had been left alone for only five minutes!

"I thought you had given him permission. You know, to go buy some paint to fix up that green patch on his wall. He never got back to working on it after that Stone Warrior attacked."

"We've got to go after him, before he does anything stupid." sighed Nya. "Well, more stupid than usual."

Slipping on her golden Samurai bracelet, she and Lloyd dashed out the door. As much as she wanted to make sure her suit was in working order before she left the safety of the dojo, there was simply no time to run a test if they wanted to catch up to Dareth before he got himself into trouble.

Her Samurai suit really had a knack for breaking down at the worst possible moments, Nya mused. All she could hope is that it would actually pull through this time.

Out on the streets, she looked around wildly for Dareth. Ninjago City was as industrious as usual, with people flocking back and forth from the different buildings. How could that Elvis wannabe have disappeared so easily into the crowd?

"There!" Lloyd shouted, pointing downtown. "I think he just ran into the subway station!"

Together they pushed their way through the masses of pedestrians, earning several dirty looks and an indignant "hey!" from one.

"Sorry." Lloyd called behind them. "Important ninja buisness!"

Out of breath, Nya sprinted into the subway station. As she slowed down, she glanced up and saw one of the metros began to move. Face pressed up against the window was Dareth, smiling and waving.


End file.
